{"id":26783,"date":"2024-03-01T03:00:18","date_gmt":"2024-03-01T10:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/?p=26783"},"modified":"2024-03-01T06:18:45","modified_gmt":"2024-03-01T13:18:45","slug":"hiking-the-worlds-most-beautiful-trail-italys-alta-via-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/hiking-the-worlds-most-beautiful-trail-italys-alta-via-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Hike the World\u2019s Most Beautiful Trail: The Alta Via 2"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Michael Lanza<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hiking toward a mountain pass named Furcela dia Roa, on the first day of my family\u2019s weeklong, hut-to-hut trek on the Alta Via 2 in northern Italy\u2019s Dolomite Mountains, we stopped in an open meadow of grass and wildflowers overlooking a deep, verdant valley in Puez-Odle Natural Park. Across the valley loomed a wall of cliffs topped by jagged spires, like a castle a thousand feet tall. I looked at our map and back up at the stone wall before us, puzzled. After a moment, I realized: We have to get over that wall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Scanning the vertiginous earth before us, I eventually picked out the trail snaking across the head of the valley and making dozens of switchbacks up a finger of scree, talus, and snow leading to the lowest notch in that wall: the Furcela dia Roa, the pass we had to cross.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/strong>Hi, I\u2019m Michael Lanza, creator of The Big Outside.\u00a0Click here<\/a> to sign up for my FREE email newsletter. Join The Big Outside<\/a> to get full access to all of my blog\u2019s stories. Click here<\/a> for my e-books to classic backpacking trips. Click here<\/a> to learn how I can help you plan your next trip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a>
My family trekking to Furcela dia Roa on the Alta Via 2 in Parco Naturale Puez-Odle, Dolomite Mountains, Italy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It was our first encounter with a lesson that would repeat itself many times over the course of our week of hiking on the Alta Via 2: These mountains are so steep and rocky that the trail often traverses ground that, from a distance, looks impassable without ropes and climbing gear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But in reality, my family, including our young kids, were perfectly comfortable with the exposure, we never felt that any section was unsafe (although we avoided higher-elevation sections that were still snow-covered in July)\u2014and our trek on the Alta Via 2, a footpath sometimes described as \u201cthe most beautiful trail in the world,\u201d turned out to be a wonderful and unforgettable adventure .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Find your next adventure in your Inbox. Sign up now for my FREE email newsletter<\/a>.<\/em><\/h4>\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a>
My wife, Penny, hiking the Alta Via 2 north of Ball Pass in Parco Naturale Paneveggio Pale di San Martino, Dolomite Mountains, Italy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

My family spent a week trekking hut to hut on a 39-mile (62k) section of the Alta Via 2, or \u201cThe Way of the Legends,\u201d a roughly 112-mile (180k) alpine footpath through one of the world\u2019s most spectacular and storied mountain ranges, Italy\u2019s Dolomites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The AV 2 is famous for attributes that possess even more allure than a steaming plate of gnocchi: incredible scenery, comfortable mountain huts with excellent food\u2014and, for the type of trekker who\u2019s drawn to challenge, a reputation for being the most remote and difficult of the several multi-day alte vie (plural for alta via), or \u201chigh paths,\u201d that traverse the Dolomites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That last point also makes the AV 2 less crowded (read: easier to get hut reservations) than the more-popular and easier AV 1 and other hut treks in Europe. But it\u2019s the scenery that makes this trek world-class, as the photos below demonstrate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scroll below the photo gallery for the link to my full story about this trek.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve helped many readers plan an unforgettable hut trek on the Alta Via 2.
Want my help with yours? Find out more here<\/a>.<\/h4>\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Trekking<\/figure><\/div>
\"Passo<\/figure>
\"Ibex<\/figure><\/div>
\"Trail<\/figure><\/div><\/div>
\"Trail<\/figure>
\"Outside<\/figure><\/div>
\"Trail<\/figure><\/div><\/div>
\"The<\/figure><\/div>
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>
\"The<\/figure><\/div>
\"Trekking<\/figure><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Read my story about that trip, \u201c\u2018The World’s Most Beautiful Trail:\u2019 Trekking the Alta Via 2 Through Italy’s Dolomite Mountains<\/a>,\u201d which has many more photos, a video, and expert tips for planning it yourself. (Like many stories at The Big Outside, reading that entire story requires a paid subscription<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

See all stories about international adventures<\/a>\u00a0and family adventures<\/a> at The Big Outside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Big Outside helps you find the best adventures.
\nJoin now<\/a>\u00a0for full access to ALL stories and get a free e-book and member gear discounts<\/a>!<\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Michael Lanza Hiking toward a mountain pass named Furcela dia Roa, on the first day of my family\u2019s weeklong, hut-to-hut trek on the Alta Via 2 in northern Italy\u2019s Dolomite Mountains, we stopped in an open meadow of grass and wildflowers overlooking a deep, verdant valley in Puez-Odle Natural Park. Across the valley loomed a wall of cliffs topped by … <\/p>\n

Read on<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":35604,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"ub_ctt_via":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false},"categories":[21,20,4395,14,3894],"tags":[1868,2282,2281,1869,2292,2283,2264,2303,2310,2289,5166,2280],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tbo-media.sfo2.digitaloceanspaces.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/06231906\/Dolo1-131-Alta-Via-2-S-of-Rifugio-Rosetta-Parco-Naturale-Paneveggio-Pale-di-San-Martino-Dolomites-Italy-copy.jpg?fit=1200%2C797&ssl=1","author_info":{"display_name":"Michael Lanza","author_link":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/author\/michaelalanza\/"},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tbo-media.sfo2.digitaloceanspaces.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/06231906\/Dolo1-131-Alta-Via-2-S-of-Rifugio-Rosetta-Parco-Naturale-Paneveggio-Pale-di-San-Martino-Dolomites-Italy-copy.jpg?fit=1200%2C797&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paNGJs-6XZ","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26783"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26783"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26783\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":62148,"href":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26783\/revisions\/62148"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35604"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26783"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26783"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thebigoutside.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26783"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}